


Beauty of the Broken

by Hannahchamah



Category: Night at the Museum (2006 2009)
Genre: 1800's, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Western, Country & Western, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, M/M, Minor Original Character(s), Period-Typical Homophobia, Period-Typical Racism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-18
Updated: 2015-03-06
Packaged: 2018-03-08 01:01:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3189923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hannahchamah/pseuds/Hannahchamah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Former bandit and cowboy Jedediah Smith searches a for a job to pay off his debts, finding himself at the hands of a strange ranch- and an even stranger boss- an eccentric, sickly young man named Gaius Edwards (Octavius).</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Flower in the Desert

"It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience."

 

- _Julius Caesar_  


 

 

Early as it was, the sun shone brightly, having no alternative, on nothing new. The small mining town was mumbling with the sounds of morning, the waking light shining into unshielded eyes and uncovered windows. As the small town woke, the saloon slept. Its door was darkened, and the floor rumbled gently with the sounds of drunken and sated snores. Whiskey and beer dripped like golden honey from the parted lips of the drunk, some of whom had fallen asleep in their place at the bar. Upstairs, the glow of the morning light came in shafts through the windows and wood panels, fighting past the curtain of pipe smoke and the heavy, sweet scent of extinguished passions. Squinting past the affections of the sun, Jedediah sat up. He was slow in technique as he drug himself from the grasp of the bed, fumbling to fight the clothes over his skin, which was nearly sticky to the touch. Looking past the sleeping woman in bed, he snatched his black leather hat off of the bedpost and and sat it back on his mess of wavy hair. He stepped down the stairs without grace, without paying his tab, and he hurried past the saloon doors. As his worn boot graced the dust of the road, the soft sound was replaced by the snapping, harsh sound of paper under his toe. He was pleased to see the paper was an advertisement of a job. The wallet in his pocket was light, and his numerous unpaid bar tabs were growing heavy. The advertisement of a ranch working job was a welcome sight. " _No harm in checking it out_ ," he thought without hesitation. 

 

 

The paper directed him down the road a few miles, into a small, relatively lush valley. The sun was still young in the blue, cloudless sky as Jedediah led his horse down the path, and the wind was a warm murmur over his shoulders. Further past the gate and the freshly set fence, sat the manor. It hung heavily in the center of the ranch, untouched by the light and warmth which ensconced it. Jed rode up to the front of the house slowly, looking up at the tightly shut windows and the dark, bound curtains. Stepping off of his horse, he walked up to the porch with the crumpled paper in his glove. The door was darkened, and despite the groups of horses roaming and of men working around the lot, the house bore no sign of life. He rapped the back of his leather clothed knuckle on the door, which was quickly opened. An older woman with neat hair as black as night peered up at him. She opened the door wider, narrowing her eyes a bit at Jed's nonchalant stance. "Who are you? Here for a job?" She spoke, her voice reminiscent of a bat's squeak. Scratching his head slightly, he replied, easily towering over the short woman. "Uh, yeah. Found a paper..." "-Oh, come in, you're letting in all sorts of dust, wipe your boots." He blinked and followed her directions obediently, shutting the door behind him. The silence of the manor hit him like wall; the cool air enveloped him. The room was dim, hearth fire extinguised and lamps flickering. The wood floors were dark and worn, the beautiful old furniture faded slightly from years of use. Across the walls and on the mantle were all manner of trinkets and baubles- fine china plates and a group of ornate nesting dolls- even the  floor just under the sofa was carpeted with an old Persian rug. Jedediah looked around wonderingly, running his fingers over the curvature of the furniture and the worn wood of the mantle.  

 

"Mister Edwards will see you now."

 

The door to the office was open, and the short light of a candle shone from within. As Jedediah stepped inside, the door clicked shut quietly behind him. He watched his heel for a moment as the door closed, taking his hat off. As he raised his head, his eyes met another pair, dark and gentle. A young, wispy man sat at the desk in front of him. His hair was just as dark as his eyes, and his skin was was pale and lovely as the moon. He was dressed neatly in clean, pressed gentleman's wear. The man smiled without rising from the chair, his cheeks lifting as the gesture reposed on actual feeling. 

 

"Good morning." He said clearly, his voice carrying a gentle, sweet hum. The cowboy smiled slightly in return, holding his hat close as he shook the man's thin, smooth hand, loosening his normally tight grip as quickly as he accepted the man's delicate hand. "I'm Gaius Edwards. Pleasure to meet you." Jed looked at him for a brief second before he sat down in the chair in front of the desk. "Jed-Jedediah Smith here, sir." He smiled and set his hat in his lap, taking his gloves off politely as he felt inclined to. "Looking for work?" Mister Edwards' brows knitted up slightly, and he locked his fingers together. Jedediah scratched his stubble with his thumb, glancing around the dark room with usual curiousity. "Yeah, I am. Ain't been able to find anythin' but mining round here."  Mister Edwards pursed his lips gently, following Jedediah's gaze. "No? Well, there wouldn't be anything even relating to mining here on my ranch, obviously..." His plush, accented voice trailed off slightly as Jedediah's blue eyes lingered on a wooden cane in a darkened corner of the room. The cowboy blinked a few times and dragged his gaze back up to him as his focus returned. He hesitated, his lips curling up into a soft smile as he met Mister Edward's attention. 

 

"Sounds great." 

 

 

  
_Chapter two coming soon_...


	2. The Cane and the Music Box

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jedediah Smith has successfully settled into his new home at Mister Edward's ranch, and all seems to be very well, but the presence of a strange man and a bottle of pills could convince him something darker is afoot.

The last days of the month were surrounded by a miasma, the heat and the moisture was inseparable, unusual for a Texas evening.  Jedediah had been at the ranch for nearly three days; he had not seen Mister Edwards since the first. His fellow ranch hands were nice enough, and the servants of the manor were polite. Jedediah walked up towards the beautiful old manor after a long day of work, the cool air from inside prickling the hair on his arms as Missy stood the door open.  
  
 Missy was a tall, middle aged black woman with a strong, beautiful jaw and a genuine gleam in her eyes. She smacked Jed's shoulder playfully with a washcloth, urging him in out of the heat. "Get on wit' your pasty buns, boy." Jedediah smiled under the brim of his hat, unveiling the mischievous smirk as he hung the hat on the coat rack. "'Ppreciate the endearing names, ma'am, but I ain't pasty." Missy chuckled, her cheeks lifting, as she slid the door shut behind her and she stepped inside. "Y'all look pretty pasty to me." Justin, a short, young man with white gold hair rolled his eyes playfully as he yanked his mud laced boots off. "Missy, we can't help it that we white." Jedediah wiped the back of his sweaty neck with his bandanna. The humidity that evening was worse than the dry, burning heat that usually came with the month. Jed noted that the sticky sweat stung their eyes worse than the bright sun would have, and he was very relieved to be inside for the rest of the night.  
  
"Boys!!" Missy called from the kitchen, leaning her head out of the doorway to peer out at the ranch hands. "Dinner time."

* * *

  
  
Jedediah lay in his bed after dinner. The bed was an old, soft queen sized bed, a faint luster from the aged varnish still visible by candlelight. He sunk into the warmth of the mattress like teeth into a cake, his head wreathed by the soft down pillow. As he lowered his heavy eyelids, the silence of the bedroom was interrupted. The quiet, faint hum of a song crept through the walls and under the door. Jedediah cracked his eyes open, straining to hear the forlorn whisper. It sang from somewhere upstairs, the time-lost melody crawling down the stairs and under the doors. All else in the manor was blank with silence. He lay in the void of his personal quiet, listening to the mechanical lamentations seemingly for hours before the veil of sleep descended.

* * *

  
  
He rose around six, as usual, to take care of his daily duties. Walking down the hall, he paused a moment to look up the stairs, into the darkness, remembering faintly of the music last night. His body tensed and he startled as the older, crow-like, black haired maid held his shoulder. Her grip was firm and unpleasant, causing the disheveled cowboy to move away.  
  
"The second floor is strictly forbidden."  
  
"Wasn't thinkin' anything."  
  
Jedediah held his hand up, feeling her harsh stare against his back as he walked past her. To his pleasant surprise, Mister Edwards was sitting in the parlor. He looked a shade paler than before, his eyes just a bit duller, but he was cleanly dressed in gentleman's attire. He was speaking with a man with a shock of white-grey hair atop his mostly bare head, and whose voice was deep and insensitive. It lacked any accent or flavor, following the pattern of his eyes and expression. Missy watched their interaction from the doorway, her arms crossed and her face plastered in a somewhat dour mask. Jedediah passed to the front door, taking a quiet seat to pull on his boots.  
  
"This should be enough until my next visit."  
  
The white haired man spoke at him demeaningly, holding out to Mister Edwards a glass bottle which contained a few small, white pills. Jedediah watched Mister Edward's thin hand wring the neck of the polished cane next to him. He took the bottle into his palm.  
  
"This doesn't seem nearly enough," he said out, coughing into his arm, "-no, this isn't enough at all." Jedediah ached at the man's sickly, distressed tone. He left, having heard enough- not as much as he wanted to- yet, he respected his boss enough to not eavesdrop further.  
  
It was notably colder that day, the hot miasma dissolving in the breeze of early fall. The sun hardly peeked from behind the thinly laid clouds, and the wind was fair. Mister Edwards was working at his desk when Jed came in for the evening, his door hanging open to let the warmth of the hearth into his office. Jedediah leaned his head in without much thought, desiring to see him again after their first interaction. Mister Edward's head was down as his hand and pen moved quickly over the page, his wavy black hair falling over his ears and against his delicate cheeks. Jedediah swallowed, his throat dry as he suddenly became nervous.  
  
"Hey, evening, Mister Edwards..."  
  
The dark haired man looked up and smiled gently, seeing Jedediah's pink face. "Oh, Jedediah, good evening! Come in?" Jedediah sat down in front of his desk, pausing before he spoke as Mister Edwards coughed into his handkerchief. Jed winced slightly for him, watching the man's body shake and cringe with each wracking cough. He wiped his lip politely, straightening his thin form as much as he could manage. "My apologies for that..." Jed shook his head too eagerly, leaning in an inch in concern. "No, yer fine... Ain't nothin' to apologize over."  
Gaius blushed and glanced away for a moment as their shared gaze lingered. He hesitated a second, then looked back up at Jedediah's distracting blue eyes. "So, how are you liking it here..?" "It's just great, the work is good and the pay is fair... My room is real nice." Gaius nodded contentedly, talking with him casually for a while before returning upstairs weakly.  
  
Jedediah opened the office door for him, struggling to watch Mister Edwards limp out on the support of his worn cane, his defined brows knitted together in pain. "You need some help up the stairs, Mister Edwards..?" He shook his head in dismissal, climbing the dark stairs to the second floor with a quiet hiss of pain as his weak knee buckled. Jedediah watched him concernedly, staying at the bottom of the step until he disappeared into the darkness upstairs, and the thump of his cane could no longer be heard. Missy peeked her head in behind him, gently ushering him back into the living space. "He ain't looking so good tonight. Leave 'im to rest, sugar plum."  Jed glanced back over his shoulder. "Missy, who was that man today?"  
  
"The doctor."


	3. Lamplight

For a week the stairs were abandoned to all but the servants, and every night, laying in their beds, the ranch hands would catch again the soft lamentations of the music box. Mister Edwards was not seen.  
  
"He's damned," Justin stated, leaning against the porch fence. "it's an affliction."  
  
"Like a sickness er'..?"  Jedediah trailed, looking at Justin's lips, which were wrapped around the paper of some cheap cigar. Smoke puffed from between his lips as he released it into the course of the moonlit wind.  
  
"Addiction," he said after a brief pause, letting the cigar hang from his lip.  
  
"Morphine. An he's got the money for it, the odd bastard." Jed's shoulders stiffened, his eyes wandering away from the choking smoke. "You ain't got right to talk about him like that. Edwards' a decent man enough." Justin glanced over at him, stooping against the wooden panel.  
  
 "Townspeople think he's some kind of vampire. I can't say I'm too doubtin' of that. Keep your distance, either way."  
  
Jed pursed his lips, the waves of his hair blowing softly against his face.  
  
 "Yeah."  
  
Without speaking further, Justin went inside, and the other was alone to breathe. Letting his arms fall over the worn balustrade, his fingers grazed upon a sliver of warm light. Brief lamplight shone on his calloused hands from the window just above, where the blackened curtains were slightly parted. As soon as it came, however, the lamp's young light was extinguished, and the curtains drawn shut again. Jedediah knew he would miss the music box that night.  
  
A fist against the front door woke the house the next morning, just before the breach of the sun. Missy ran lightly down the stairs to open the door, digging her bare heel into the fibers of the floor as her mind woke from its belated slumber. Her hand stopped before she could take the doorknob, against half of her conscience, but another pound against the door persuaded her. She regarded the man coldly as he came inside, his funereal garb forcing it's presence into the room.  
  
"Doctor."  
  
"You'd know your place to take my coat," said the white-haired man, a venom of disdain saturating the words crawling from his tongue. Missy swallowed back an immediate retort, managing after a moment to mutter a few words past her teeth.  
  
"I'm a free woman, Mister Sutton."  
  
"Not here, you aren't," he chided with mocking gentility, pushing his heavy coat against her arms. "You know full well this is not the North anymore." Missy hesitated once more, holding the coat with white knuckles.  
  
 "...Mister Edwards' upstairs. He ain't come down yet." Missy muttered, feeling the word's bitter aftertaste almost immediately. The doctor took his case, striding down the hall to Mister Edward's room. Jed took after him silently, glancing over at Missy, who, to his surprise, made no attempt to stop him. Doing his best to muffle the sound of his heavy boots, he followed the man upstairs, waiting until he heard the creak of an opened door to ascend into the darkened hall. Jedediah pressed his ear to the door as a child would to a seashell, squinting his eyes as if it would help him hear better.  
  
"Get up. What are you still doing asleep?"  
  
"I-"  
  
"I've brought the medicine for this week. Where's the payment, boy?"  
  
A dry lump swelled in the back of Jed's throat as his fingers rested on the time-worn door, listening for the relief of Gaius' voice in the unnerving silence.  
  
"It... It's here. I'll get it for you."  
  
Jedediah cringed reluctantly at the thump of Gaius' cane against the wooden floor, and the painful scraping sound of his injured leg as it dragged behind him. Mister Edwards coughed raggedly, his throat choked with what sounded like tar in his lungs.  
  
"Good. I will be back next week."  
  
Jedediah pulled away from the door quickly, and sunk back into the darkness behind it, just as the doctor pushed it open to leave. Then, without thinking, he went into the still-illuminated bedroom. The light inside was warm, and could have provided some comfort once as it shone and glistened upon the colorful baubles around the room like a broken stained glass window. Jedediah couldn't help but let his mouth fall a bit agape as he stared at everything, drawing his focus back to Mister Edwards, who was laying still in his bed. The sides of his white lips curled up into a small smile as he watched the pair of blue eyes dart around the room.  
  
"You didn't seem like the type of man to listen too closely to rules."  
  
Jedediah furrowed his brows slightly, suddenly remembering he wasn't even supposed to be on this floor in the first place. Immediately he yanked his hat off, and stumbled clumsily back towards the door.  
  
"Shit- shoot- sorry, Mister Edwards..."  
  
The smile that ghosted on his pale lips disappeared, and he pushed himself to sit up. "Jed, wait, it's fine," he insisted weakly, his voice lacking the sweet warmth the other had grown accustomed to. Slowly, Jedediah returned to Mister Edwards' bedside, his hand grazing over the music box on the nightstand. Though he had never seen it, it felt familiar against his fingers, and he let them linger a moment longer.  He didn't feel out of place  beside Gaius in this museum of eccentricities, but the situation made him slightly uncomfortable.  
  
"Hate to disrespect, but that man ain't much like a doctor." Jedediah blurted out, breaking the peaceful silence. Gaius took a cold cup of tea from the nightstand, the ornate porcelain rattling against its saucer as his hands trembled.  
  
"He's my only hope," he said, swallowing down the cold, bitter drink. Jedediah leaned over the bedside, holding the other's pale, delicate hands still in his own. "Come on... You'll get healthy again. Look at all these treasures you got in here..," he said, looking around in wonder. "Places I can't even begin to dream of... You been there to get them..." Gaius smiled faintly, avoiding the brightness of Jedediah's eyes.  
  
"I've never been to any of those places," he admitted, looking up with glass eyes at the meaningless collectibles that were lovingly placed around his room. "I used to dream of it before I became..," he trailed off momentarily, unsure of his state and of the right words to use. "...Before I became like this." Jed's brows lifted slightly at the remorse from the heart of such a delicate creature. He placed his hand on Gaius' thin, frail shoulder, patting it gently.  
  
"All hope ain't lost, partner."


End file.
